Chuck Leavell hits environmental key

The Rolling Stones came to Washington, D.C. to rock the Verizon Center on Monday, but the band’s piano player, Chuck Leavell, had other things to accomplish in town, namely raise awareness for protecting the environment. Leavell, also a one-time member of the Allman Brothers, is the founder of the environmental news website, Mother Nature Network and a tree farmer, himself.

Leavell talked to POLITICO about President Obama’s environmental policy.

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“I think most folks would say that he’s lagged behind, but the fact that he mentioned the environment so prominently in his inauguration address gave people a lot of hope.” Leavell said that he’d like to see Obama — and all U.S. presidents — “give more emphasis on the environment.”

Leavell hopes to see more regulations with regards to coal and carbon emissions but also incentives for renewable energy sources and he’s no stranger to the world of Washington politics; his books have been blurbed by such politics as Jimmy Carter, Richard Lugar and Zell Miller and, in 2003, he was invited to the White House for the signing of the Healthy Forest Restoration Act into law.

“These are big issues that require a lot of money and a lot of energy and a lot of creative thinking,” he said.